Trust me on this, the whole family will love this Salty Sweet Caramel Bliss Ball recipe! They’re made in no time, are an excellence fibre and protein source and stay fresh for up to a week.
Trust me, you’ll never again buy those health halo brands that make big promises while tricking you into spending an arm and a leg! Let’s do this!
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How Salted Caramel Bliss Balls nourish you
My Salted Caramel Bliss Balls contain lots of fibre, natural sugars and a great amount of natural protein, giving you energy, feeding your gut and satisfying sweet cravings.
- Natural Sugars – while carbohydrates AKA sugars have received a bid of a bad wrap recently, consuming natural sugars is nature intended. It is a quick energy source for our brain and body and coming from wholefoods, these sugary carbohydrates come packed with lots of essential minerals and vitamins.
- Fibre – calculated using the Australian Food Composition Database, two of our Salted Caramel Bliss Balls contain around 2.3g of fibre. This is about 10% of the recommended dietary intake for children (women should eat at least 25g of fibre/day and men around 30g/day). Read more about in my article Why is fibre important to the body & how does it affect health.
- Protein – protein is a hot topic right now (let’s wait and see what the food marketing tells us about it in five years time)! Two Salted Caramel Bliss Balls will provide you with 1 – 1.5g of protein (depending on the version, sunflower seed being the highest). Most of us do have an adequate intake (the estimated average requirement is 0.6g to ~ 0.75g/kg of body weight, with recommended intake around 0.75g to ~ 1g/kg per day). If you are seeking to lose weight, are growing (e.g. childhood, pregnancy), past middle age or perform extensive exercise, a higher protein intake may be beneficial.
5 Simple Ingredients to tickle your taste buds
This may very well be the easiest and quickest recipe for a delicious, nourishing snack you’ll ever come across. Just five ingredients to create a flavour explosion in your mouth:
- Rolled Oats. Provides a beautiful texture, protein and fibre.
- Medjool Dates. The recipe’s hero, providing fibre rich sweetness with a natural caramel note.
- Desiccated Coconut. Fibre, healthy fats and texture.
- Sea Salt Flakes. Lots of minerals and an essential for the salted caramel taste.
Allergy Friendly Substitutions & Recipe Alternatives
Adjusting the recipe for various dietary needs was an easy. Fortunately, pretty much every version provides similar dietary benefits and values. Our Salted Caramel Bliss Ball recipe is naturally egg- and dairy-free (i.e. plant-based in health halo language) but contain gluten. While oats are naturally gluten-free, they are often gluten contaminated and it’s best for people suffering from celiac disease to avoid them.
Gluten Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
To make the Bliss Balls gluten free, simply swap the oats with almonds (or your favourite nuts) or nut meal.
Nut Free & GF Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
If you suffer from a nut allergy (and a gluten intolerance/allergy) simply use sunflower seeds instead of the oats/nuts. This version makes the Bliss Balls also “school safe” (in Australia).
Low Sugar/ Low Carb Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
If you require a lower sugar version, you can swap the dates for fresh carrots. This version will require more moisture depending on the freshness of your carrots. You might have to add a little coconut flower for added stickiness. My kids aren’t a big fan because they are less sweet and chewy, but I don’t mind them at all. If you miss sweetness and can tolerate it, add a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup. Using nuts or seeds instead of oats will make them also chewier.
Endless Flavour Options? Here we go…
I am currently experimenting with different flavours for these Bliss Balls. Please let me know your favourite flavour combo in the comments below.
Raspberry Delight Bliss Balls: add 15g of freeze dried raspberries and roll in raspberry dust. So sweet and bursting sour.
Choc Cherry Bliss Balls: add 60g of semi dried sour cherries and a teaspoon of almond essence. Roll in desiccated coconut.
Cinnamon Choc Brownie Bliss Balls: Add 15 g of raw cocoa powder and two pinches of cinnamon. So good!
Orange Chocolate Bliss Balls: add 15g of raw cocoa powder, a few drops of orange essence and some grated organic orange zest.
Step-by-Step Cooking Guide
As promised, this is possibly the easiest recipe you’ll ever make. And all you need is a powerful mixer. I love my Thermomix but have also had great results using the Ninja Food Processor.
STEP 1 – Place the dates (or carrots), desiccated coconut, oats (or almonds/seeds) and sea salt into a blender (I recommend this one!).
STEP 2 – Blitz the ingredients into a fine powder.
STEP 3 – Depending on the freshness of your dates (and most definitely when using carrots), you may need to add a little water (start with a teaspoon; I usually need about 1 TBS) to bring it all together into a mouldable paste.
STEP 4 – Use a metric half-tablespoon measuring spoon or very small ice cream scooper (if you love consistency ;-)) to scoop out small amounts of the paste and roll them in your palms into small balls.
Expert Tips & Common Questions
I store mine in an airtight container with additional desiccated coconut. This keeps them well coated and dry. They stay fresh for a week (if you manage to not eat them all before then.
Yes, absolutely. Any nut is fine but it will obviously change the flavour slightly. Try hazelnut with cacao, walnut with with a few raisins and freshly grated carrot, macadamias with lemon zest…
When it comes to seeds, you can use pumpkin seeds but smaller seeds like hemp, chia, sesame or linseed don’t have enough body. I also find their taste too strong to use them on their own. But please feel free to add them for additional health benefits.
This happens when the mixture is too dry. Simply add a little more water or another date.
If the mixture is too sticky, add some more oats, desiccated coconut or coconut flour. Also try to use less water next time you make the mix.
Help me spread healthy deliciousness!
You being here means so much to me! I hope you like the recipe and enjoy learning a bit more about how we best fuel our bodies, no matter the dietary restriction.
Can you please do me a favour? If you like this recipe, please also try my other recipes, rate and comment. Feel free to ask me any questions in the comments. I really hope your family enjoys our Banana Bread and that you find foodamentally a great resource for your family’s food journey.
Watch how to make the Bliss Balls in just 5 Minutes
Ultimate 5 Minutes Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
Equipment
Ingredients
- 100 g Medjool Dates ideally organic
- 30 g Rolled Oats ideally organic
- 30 g Desiccated Coconut
- 2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes
- 1-2 tbsp Filtered Water (as needed)
- More Desiccated Coconut for coating the Bliss Balls
Gluten Free Bliss Balls
- 30 g Raw Almonds or Almond Meal (instead of oats) organic and activated is best
Nut Free Bliss Balls (GF)
- 30 g Raw Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats) organic and activated is best
Low Carb/Sugar Bliss Balls (GF, NFO)
- 100 g Raw Carrot (instead of dates) grate if your food processor isn't strong enough
- 30 g Raw Almonds, Almond Meal or Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats)
- 1 tbsp Maple Syrup, Honey or Natural Sweetener as needed
- 1-2 tbs Coconut Flour as needed
Video
Instructions
- Place the dates (100 g Medjool Dates; carrots if low carb), oats (30 g Rolled Oats; almonds, sunflower seeds in gluten free/nut free), desiccated coconut (30 g Desiccated Coconut) and salt flakes (2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes) into the bowl of a food processor.100 g Medjool Dates, 30 g Rolled Oats, 30 g Desiccated Coconut, 2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes
- Process all the ingredients into a fine powder. Depending on how powerful your food processor is, this may take about 30-60 seconds. Scrape the sides down and repeat if necessary.
- If your dates are very moist, the bliss ball mixture will already come together at this stage and you are welcome to progress with the next step. If not, simply add 1tbps of water (1-2 tbsp Filtered Water) and continue to process for 15-30 seconds. Add a little more water at a time, process for 15-30 seconds until you have a darkish looking paste.1-2 tbsp Filtered Water
- Once the paste has come together (you want it to be moist but not very sticky), take a 1/2 tablespoon measuring tool (or simply a teaspoon) and scoop equal amounts of mixture into your hands. Roll in the palms of your hands into small balls and then roll them into desiccated coconut (More Desiccated Coconut for coating the Bliss Balls) until evenly coated.More Desiccated Coconut for coating the Bliss Balls
Gluten Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
- Proceed as above, however, use raw almonds (30 g Raw Almonds or Almond Meal (instead of oats)) instead of rolled oats. If you don't have a powerful food processor (I highly recommend this Ninja one from above), use almond meal instead.100 g Medjool Dates, 30 g Desiccated Coconut, 30 g Raw Almonds or Almond Meal (instead of oats), 2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes
Nut & Gluten Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
- Proceed as in the base recipe above, however, use sunflower seeds (30 g Raw Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats)) instead of rolled oats. You can use pepitas/pumpkin seeds as well but they will alter the taste.100 g Medjool Dates, 30 g Raw Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats), 2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes
Low Carb/Sugar Bliss Balls (GF, NFO)
- In order to make the Salted Caramel Bliss Balls low carb, we have to replace the dates and the oats with carrots (100 g Raw Carrot (instead of dates)) and nuts or seeds (30 g Raw Almonds, Almond Meal or Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats)/30 g Raw Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats)). You might want to add a little natural sweetness as they will definitely not be as sweet and caramelly without the dates. If you find them too crumbly, add 1-2 tbsp more water (or even replace with silken tofu for added protein) and 1-2 tsp coconut flour which will absorb the moisture and make them more sticky.2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes, 100 g Raw Carrot (instead of dates), 30 g Raw Almonds, Almond Meal or Sunflower Seeds (instead of oats), 1 tbsp Maple Syrup, Honey or Natural Sweetener, 1-2 tbs Coconut Flour
